Recently, in “Nedjeljna Dalmacija,” i.e. in
“Profil,” in “Slobodna
Dalmacija,” and in many
other newspapers, a lot has been written on Croatian philosophy,
Croatian Philosophic Society, the “Praxis” journal,
Philosophy department of the Faculty of Philosophy, and even on
individual philosophers. From time to time, my name was also mentioned
– mostly in just the same way as in the last four decades.

From purely personal reasons (not related to philosophy or politics)
for some time I could not participate in philosophical gatherings nor
could I, even if I wanted to, join the current (so-called philosophical
polemics. Even now I don’t want to polemicize, because I
think
that, for the general cause, it is better if I publicly confess at
least some of my numerous philosophical errors. Of course, incidentally
I’ll have to say something about other things and other
people.
But – not to delay.

I confess that the philosophical texts that I have published from the
end of the 1940s until today (approximately 15 books and several
hundred items in collections of papers, journals and newspapers), were
denounced in the former Yugoslavia and in the countries of
“socialist camp” throughout that time (four
decades)
– at first as insufficiently Marxist, then as non-Marxist,
anti-Marxist, idealistic, abstractly humanist, Heideggerian,
existentialist, non-dialectic, positivist etc. Some have denied every
their philosophical intention and relevancy, proclaiming them, as well
as my whole public activity, as political, demagogical,
bourgeois-liberalist, Anarchist, Left-radical, extremist,
anti-self-management, destructive, anti-Socialist and anti-Communist.
As a mitigating circumstance I state that works of some other Croatian
and especially Zagreb philosophers (members of Praxis school) were
characterized in a similar way. The aggravating circumstance for all of
us is that those works were evaluated completely differently in Western
Europe, America and elsewhere.

The Assembly of Socialist Republic of Croatia should receive honours
because, on basis of extensive elaboration of comrade Vladimir Bakarić
and comrade Miloš Žanko, as well as the vivid and
belligerent
discussions of the delegates, has condemned the Republic’s
Committee for Rewarding Scientific Workers (headed by Većeslav
Holjevac) and the expert commission for the “Božidar
Adžija” award (headed by Professor Vladimir Filipović), for
giving that award to two members of Praxis school (Milan Kangrga and
Gajo Petrović), and because has immediately replaced Veco Holjevac, for
not accepting that condemnation. Because of that action it is not
justified to condemn the Assembly for constant brutal interference in
the sphere of science, for during several decades hundreds of
scientific workers (among them many are generally recognized as victims
of the previous regime) have received awards on Republic level, but
only once the Assembly of Socialist Republic of Croatia held such
spectacular discussion with such decisive conclusions. In order not to
give impression that the condemned award “Božidar
Adžija”
was the only award that I have ever received in former Yugoslavia, I
confess that I was given two more – the award of Matica
hrvatska
for 1955 (for the book “English Empiricist
Philosophy”) and
“Nolit”s award for 1987 (for the book
“Prolegomena to
a Critic of Heidegger”), and that political forums
didn’t
react, just as they failed to react negatively to hundreds of other
“federal,” “republic” and
“city”
official, semi-official and unofficial awards that were given to other
scientists, writers, artists etc. (some got several dozens).

I confess also that some university forums have noticed my damaging
activity. The University Council, on demand of its president Boris
Bakrač (who, at the session of the Council was waving the newspapers
containing the speech of President Tito against the professors of
Praxis school), didn’t give its consent for my promotion to
the
title of full professor in 1968. However, the disobedient Faculty of
Philosophy, one year later (1969), on its own initiative has started
and completed my promotion into that title – without the
blessing
of the University. It was in accordance with the principled attitude of
the Faculty of Philosophy (which came into prominence in 1971-1972) not
to fire its members for political reasons. In 1974 the dean of the
Faculty of Philosophy said to me that the Faculty will react against
the expulsion of members of Praxis school, which politicians were
planning in that time, cancelling it after the fierce reaction of
international public on the expulsion of eight professors from Faculty
of Philosophy in Belgrade.[1]

I confess that I was one of the initiators of the foundation of the
Croatian Philosophical Society, first secretary of CFS (1957-1959) and
president for one term (1963-1964); also, that I participated very
often (particularly as lecturer) in symposiums and discussion evenings
of the Society. I confess that, contrary to numerous similar societies,
Croatian Philosophical Society was independent, didn’t act
under
anyone’s “higher” directives, nor did it
ever have
its “party aktif” (which was general rule in every
professional, cultural, social etc. organizations and institutions).
According to its capabilities, the Society worked on the promotion of
philosophy, and it would be good to write more about this –
without excessive praise, but without groundless denunciations too. In
any case, the Society, soon after its foundation, has achieved
remarkable prestige, so for some time the rulers were dreaming about
putting it under their control and misusing it for denunciation of
“Praxis”. However, their attempts to do that, to
their
sorrow – have failed miserably. Because of that, credit
should be
given to all of them who, in a past session of the CFS, pushed through
some statement in which they politically denounced some particular
philosophers, some former managements of the Society, and,
“incidentally,” the “Praxis”
journal. But, it
would be interesting to know how many members the Society has today,
how many have voted for this statement and what significant
philosophical works lay behind our political cleaners of philosophy.

I confess that I was one of the founders of the mentioned notorious
philosophical journal “Praxis,” which started to be
published in 1964, and was thwarted in 1974; also that, regardless of
the official criticisms and campaigns which were pursued all the time
against it, I was exercising the duty of one of the two of its main and
responsible editors. We knew that the vigorous main directive for
attacks on “anti-Communist”
“Praxis” had been
given by President Tito personally, and because of that, in the attacks
on “Praxis,” were so concordant all political
forums,
leading cadres and ideologues from all republics of former Yugoslavia
(meanwhile, some of those attackers have become politically inactive,
and some are in power or close to the power today too). Regardless of
that, arrogantly, I confess, we keep to the praxisfulness.

The Korčula Summer School – closely related to
“Praxis” and inside the
“praxis” – have
included amongst its most intensive participants, a lot of highly
esteemed, even some of the most esteemed Western European and American
philosophers of most diverse orientations (from unorthodox Marxists,
through phenomenologists to analytical philosophers), and international
philosophical journals, even daily newspapers have written about
“Praxis” journal and the philosophers of Praxis
school as a
significant phenomenon of the international philosophical life. I
confess self-critically that I didn’t oppose that
international
affirmation of “Praxis,” and that I helped it
according to
my capabilities.

With this the list of my general sins is far from completed, but I
think I should confess some concrete ones too. So, I confess that I
taught three subjects in the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb for more
decades (Logic, Epistemology and Ontology), and I gradually succeeded
teaching assistants being elected on all of the mentioned subjects. I
was condemned in the newspapers on the grounds that one of them is
anti-Marxist, the other one – non-Marxist, and the third one
– a Marxist with mistaken orientation. But, I confess, I
liberalistically thought and still think that neither Marxism nor
anti-Marxism is an obstacle for the work in University.

Mea maxima culpa, at least according to some opinions, is Žarko
Puhovski.[2] When it is so, I confess that he was indeed one of those
whose first evaluator for the doctoral dissertation was me, together
with academic Predrag Vranicki and professor Milan Kangrga, as members
of commission. I confess that this commission has positively evaluated
the doctoral dissertation of Žarko Puhovski, who successfully defended
this dissertation in front of the commission with the same members, and
with me as a president. I confess that (as the other members of the
commission), I didn’t agree with some of the
candidate’s
opinions, and we have vividly discussed that in the public defence in
front of significantly numerous auditorium. However, I also confess
that this dissertation (which is available as a book to anyone
interested) I have considered and I consider it to be very successful,
not only by our criteria, but international ones too.

I confess that I also have a very good opinion about other scientific
works, as well as scientific capabilities of Žarko Puhovski, and that
it was I who, several years ago, recommended him as a one-year member
of the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin, one of the most eminent
scientific institutes in the world. The mentioned institute is created
according to the model of even more famous Institute for Advanced Study
in Princeton, but it is significantly smaller by its range. Every year,
the Wissenschaftskolleg invites for a year some 40 eminent scientific
workers from different professions throughout the world, of which
German scientists get approximately half of the invitations. For that
reason, it is not so simple to get an invitation for a one year stay at
this institute, and Puhovski got and realized such an invitation.
Surely, he didn’t receive the invitation only because I have
recommended him as a person who was also a member of this institute as
well as the institute in Princeton. Significantly complicated and,
sometimes, long are the procedures according to which the
Wissenschaftskolleg makes the selection among the huge number of
suggestions, and eminent scientists from many countries participate in
those procedures. They are much guiltier than me because Žarko Puhovski
– apart of undersigned – was until now the only
guest of
the mentioned institute, not only from Croatia, but from the whole area
of former Yugoslavia.

I confess that my opinion about the scientific works and abilities of
Žarko Puhovski (or, anyone else) doesn’t have to mean
anything to
the political instigators of our philosophy, who, with their original
methods, can easily contest scientific competency, even moral
eligibility, not only mine, but of every living philosopher. They
cannot only prove, but de facto they have already proven that I have
never been even a member of Praxis school. They have undisputedly
determined that members of Praxis school have almost every day visited
Aleksandar Ranković – Marko,[3] and, as I have never in my
life
met nor get known the comrade Marko, I don’t have a right
anymore
even to call myself a member of Praxis school. And if the same
criterion is applied to the rest of, until now, known members of Praxis
school, it will come up that member of Praxis school and
praksisovshtina, against which all former rulers thundered,
haven’t even existed.

I confess that I should be unmasked up to the end in every other
philosophical area, and not only I, but all other members of Praxis
school too – simply because it hasn’t been done
“to
the end” until now. It means not only that members of Praxis
school should be unmasked, but also all those philosophers and
scientists in the world who evaluated them completely differently from
the Stalinist rulers of the former Soviet Union and former Yugoslavia.

Keeping in mind that I was visiting professor on many Western European
and American universities, and that I presented lectures at much more,
all those universities, and especially their philosophical departments,
should be unmasked.

Keeping in mind that all of my books and articles have been published
in many languages on diverse continents, numerous publishers and
editors should be held responsible – from America through
Europe
to Japan. Keeping in mind that, as invited speaker, I have participated
on huge number of international philosophical gatherings, organisers of
all these gatherings should be called on order, and especially Western
European and American newspapers which sometimes reported quite
extensively about my participation in those gatherings (as well as on
lectures on some universities), what our newspapers – to
their
honour – haven’t done! Also, our newspapers should
be
praised for not reporting any of the awards that members of Praxis
school received from international scientific organizations and
institutions (I wouldn’t mention them now), and
“Vjesnik” from Zagreb should be harshly condemned
because,
on one occasion (more than two years ago), it wrote properly about one
award (honorary PhD degree) which I got from one Western European
university. However, about the honorary PhD degree that my deceased
friend Rudi Supek has received from the University in Uppsala a long
time before me, it could be read only recently, in obituaries
–
as if we have hundreds of scientists with such titles (we
don’t
have them, I am afraid, not even a few dozen). Contrary to some
scientists, writers and artists who in the past period got several
dozen diverse awards, Rudi Supek, who died shortly before his 80
birthday, didn’t receive even one!

I am convinced that political instigators of our philosophy will also
successfully perform the noble task of rehabilitation of all those
persons who are called Stalinist obscurantists in the civilized world.
Because, those obscurantists saw the real nature of
“Praxis” and members of Praxis school long time
before our
contemporary light-carriers, and therefore should receive complete
acknowledgement from their modern disciples and followers.

It is argued that some philosophical non-entities, by disclosing
philosophers and philosophy, are trying to achieve some nasty
unphilosophical goals. I know too little about all of that to
immediately join that claim. But, I don’t know of any case in
the
history of philosophy when someone has asserted himself as a
philosopher by political devaluation and defamation of philosophers
that asserted themselves with their philosophical works. Accordingly,
political instigators of philosophy, mildly speaking, cannot aspire to
any philosophical goals. What their struggle is about – that
is a
question that I put aside now.

Translator’s notes

1. In January 1975, eight dissident university professors (Mihailo
Marković, Ljubomir Tadić, Zagorka Golubović, Svetozar Stojanović,
Miladin Životić, Dragoljub Mićunović, Nebojša Popov and
Trivo
Inđić) were expelled from the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade on the
basis of a political decision of the Serbian Assembly.

2. Žarko Puhovski (b. 1946) in that period of nationalist euphoria all
over in former Yugoslavia, and concretely in Croatia, was one of the
staunchest advocate of human rights, and therefore he was attacked by
the nationalist right. The next month, in March 1993, Puhovski was one
of the founders of Croatian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights.

3. Aleksandar "Leka" Ranković (1909-1983) was a leading Yugoslav
Communist politician. He was minister of the interior and head of the
military intelligence ("OZNA") and political police ("UDBA"), and,
informally, second most influential politician in former Yugoslavia in
1950-ties and early 1960-ties, immediately after Tito. He fell from
power in 1966.